Southampton manager Tonda Eckert has given his pre Pompey game press conference, find out all he has had to say now that the weight of the FA charges has been taken off his shoulders.

Tonda has been speaking to the press and The Daily Echo was there to document his words, read on for all he said.

What was your emotion when you learned the verdict?

TE: We got a heads-up on Monday. Written reasons take a couple days but we got a heads-up on Monday when I had a meeting with the coaching staff.

It's a big week for us as a club, we're heading into a very important game on Sunday and to have clarity as quick as possible going into such an important game has not just been a relief for me but for everyone involved.

What was your reaction when you found out it was six weeks suspended?

TE: We started to prep for the Sunday game.

How much of a relief is it that this is now over for you?

TE: It's been more than four months now, it's been quite a long time. Obviously you go into a season and you push everything to the side.

We have a job to do and we need to deliver, and after the Wrexham game it came back up and it was clear that it was going to conclude relatively quickly.

I think that was maybe the toughest week straight after. I think that we've had a decent block of games, although we didn't end in the way we wanted.

But under the circumstances that we had starting the season, we've collected some points and now we need to make sure we have a big push from Sunday.

Did you fear that you would get a ban of many months?

TE: I've made a mistake, and I've said that relatively quickly. Then I think you just have to accept whatever the consequences.

I think the only thing that was up for me was to give my version to the story and I'm happy that the commission listened.

But in the end if you make a mistake it's not for me to judge the consequence. I have to take whatever comes my way.

I'm very happy that we go into Sunday and one of the biggest games that we will have all season and we have clarity.

That's not just for me but for everyone involved in the club.

Did you worry that you might not be able to coach your team?

TE: There's a fair chance that the verdict goes a different way. After such a long time, we've had a verdict from the EFL, and we've had an FA verdict now.

Whatever you expect is not necessarily what you get in the end. For me, it's just to hold my hand up and one more time I've made a mistake.

Then I have to take whatever the consequences are.

What do you say to rival fans who think it's too lenient?

TE: Nothing.

How destabilising has this been for you and everyone at the club?

TE: It's tough, it changes your life. If I were to say that it's been all easy from the very moment, it's not but you have to find a way.

I think that you need to come to a conclusion at one point in the summer of how you want to continue. That first decision was not for me.

It was for the club to make a decision about how it wants to continue. In that very moment when the club has taken its decision, then it's for me.

I have to see if I have the energy and the belief to be the right one to bring that project forward. Once you do make that decision, there are no excuses.

How pleasing is it for you now that you can finally move on?

TE: Very much, not just for me. I am not the one who shares too much from my private life, but it does make a big difference that we can draw a line now.

Not just for me but also for the ones close to me.

How much could this give the club a lift before Portsmouth?

TE: It's massive for us. When I came in, and this is quite a few months ago, I made a promise to the players to always give clarity and honesty.

The clarity that they deserve and everyone in the club deserves, I couldn't give for many months. It's never easy to perform when you're not clear.

When there's uncertainty, it doesn't allow you to look too far ahead. And that is gone now, so we make sure that we put our foot on the gas and don't stop.

Could this be a real charge for your players and fans?

TE: I think this derby doesn't need too much more of a backstory. We have one now, but in the end it's about the players being on the pitch.

I ready to perform because it just means everything to the football club; it means everything to the supporters. And I think it just helps to have clarity.

Not just for this game, but also for the games moving forward. But particularly for Sunday, I didn't think that it needed anything extra.

Via Reuters